The present invention relates to digital imaging and, more particularly, to a method and system for augmenting an imaging device with non-native job settings without unduly complicating processing of imaging jobs that use only native job settings.
Imaging devices, such as documents scanners and multifunction peripheral (MFP) devices, support numerous job settings that are selectable by a user. These job settings allow a user to specify, for example, a desired output format and destination for an imaging job. Oftentimes, an imaging device manufacturer wants to add to the job settings that are supported natively on an imaging device without updating the imaging device firmware. In these cases, the manufacturer may support the additional job settings non-natively using external processes that interoperate with the imaging device.
In one known technique for supporting non-native job settings, an external controlling application transmits to an imaging device a hybrid user interface description that includes native and non-native job settings. The hybrid user interface description is applied to display the native and non-native job settings on the imaging device simultaneously. When a walk-up user selects job settings for an imaging job from the displayed job settings, the selected job settings are transmitted to the external controlling application. The external controlling application interprets the selected job settings and divides them between native and non-native job settings. The native job settings are returned to the imaging device. The imaging device processes the imaging job according to the native job settings and the natively processed image data are transmitted to an external process associated with the external controlling application. The external process then processes the imaging job according to the non-native job settings to generate fully processed image data that is transmitted to the destination.
This known technique has drawbacks, particularly in circumstances where the job settings required for a walk-up imaging job are strictly native. In that case, the hybrid user interface provided by the external controlling application unnecessarily displaces a simpler user interface that is natively supported on the imaging device, and the external controlling application is needlessly injected into the imaging job process flow.